


Under These Stars

by Myrime



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Don't copy to another site, F/M, Family, Fluff, Iron Family, Tony Stark Has A Heart, dad tony, fear of the dark, iron man bingo 3000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-26
Updated: 2019-07-26
Packaged: 2020-07-20 08:27:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19989109
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Myrime/pseuds/Myrime
Summary: Morgan knows about irrationality. There are no monsters under her bed, but she is still afraid of the dark. Luckily, her dad is always there to be her personal night light.





	Under These Stars

**Author's Note:**

> Another entry for the [Iron Man Bingo 2019 Round 2](https://iron-man-bingo.tumblr.com/), square: Afraid of the Dark.  
> I did the same prompt last round, only with [Peter](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17971229). It seems I've got a thing for the Iron Kids and darkness :b
> 
> Also, I'm hard at work for the Soulmate AU, so this is rather short. And pure fluff.

Life has become peaceful. For someone with Tony’s history and surrounded by the scars the war against Thanos has left them with, this is a nearly impossible statement. The one good thing Howard taught him, however, is that nothing is impossible, and if it seems so, the right time for it has just not yet come.

Peace is not what Tony thought it would be – when he dared to hope for it at all, considering he wasted so many years on thinking he does not deserve it. He has not made up for all of his mistakes, could not stop his nightmare from happening, could not save everyone close to him. But, he thinks, he has not wasted his life. As far as achievements go, this is not too bad. He is sure Yinsen would agree with him.

This life is as close to perfect as Tony will likely ever get, and he is happy with that. He knows what he has been unknowingly wishing for all these decades. His beautiful wife. His miracle of a daughter. Their home, far away from the bluster and pretence of New York.

Ever since moving out here to the lake, Tony finds himself sitting on his porch as often as he is down in the workshop when he cannot sleep – which is not as much of a problem anymore. Nightmares still plague him at times, but he likes waking up to Pepper next to him, or to Morgan jumping full of excitement onto their bed.

Tony is still not too fond of the stars, but reflected on the calm surface of the lake, they are less frightening, almost as if they have fallen into his hands, watching over them.

One of those nights, when Tony sits out there watching the night fall as he sips fresh mint tea, Morgan finds him out there. He would know her steps out of everybody else’s in the world. She is never afraid to put down her whole foot when she walks, and only ever tiptoes when she wants to surprise them. As afraid as Tony has been of being a father, he has not repeated Howard’s mistake of making his child feel like she is not welcome in her own home.

Setting down his tea, Tony turns around, giving in easily to the soft smile his lips pull into whenever he is near his daughter.

“Morgoona,” Tony calls quietly, “why are you not in bed?”

Morgan looks smaller than usual in the darkness shrouding the porch. She is wearing her favourite Spider-Man pyjamas – a sight that never fails to make Tony’s chest constrict – and her hair is as wild as her eyes are restless.

Shrugging, Morgan steps closer, and Tony automatically opens his arms for her to snuggle in close. Compared to when she was born, she seems to weigh less now, fitting easier into his embrace the more comfortable he gets with the thought of having an actual family.

“Your mum is already asleep,” Tony continues, murmuring into her hair as he is holding her close. “And you know what that means for munchkins like you.”

“It’s too dark.” Morgan’s voice comes out muffled since they are spoken against Tony’s chest, but he understands her nonetheless.

Morgan knows about irrationality. The concept of big words does not exist in their house, since neither Tony nor Pepper believe in dumbing down the world. Words are words, and irrational is just one of them. So, Morgan knows about it and that there are no monsters waiting under her bed for the lights to go out.

At the same time, Tony is aware how terrifying the darkness can be. He has floated among the stars and looked into the black nothingness beyond. For years, he has woken up in a panic, only calming down upon finding the soothing blue light of the arc reactor in his chest. The simple absence of light can be far more terrifying than the worst sights in the world.

“It’s night, kiddo,” Tony says anyway, “it’s always dark at night.”

Morgan leans a bit away from him, tucking her feet under herself on his lap, and looks up at him seriously. “Not when you’re here,” she argues earnestly.

The amount of trust on her face has Tony’s heart ache every day anew. He is not sure how he deserved getting here, but he would not trade this for anything. Steve and Natasha still have not given up on finding a way to reverse the Snap, but Tony has something far more precious to think about than precarious illusions of saving what is already lost.

As one, they look down at Tony’s chest, where the arc reactor usually sits. He does not wear it at home but – after a number of discussions with Pepper – decided to trust FRIDAY and the extensive security system they designed for the lake house. A number of the arc reactors are still stashed all over the house, and Tony never goes out without one. Pepper is right, however, life has to go on. 

“Then we’ll have to stay together for a while,” Tony declares with a smile.

Nodding earnestly, Morgan nods. “Forever.”

With effort, Tony keeps the sadness from his face that runs through him at his daughter’s words. _Forever_ is a concept he does not believe in, perhaps never has. For years, Tony has lived on borrowed time, avoiding death as if it has not been his legacy for so long. He has never minded much, too, just hoping he could, in the end, give more than he took.

Now, forever sounds entirely too enticing. Here at the lake, time seems to either pass too quickly or not at all. Tony is holding on to the memories he makes every day with all he has.

“Is your mum allowed to come too?” Tony asks with some amusement.

Pepper and he have been dancing around each other for too long. He does not want to go anywhere without her.

A small frown appears on Morgan’s forehead as she thinks hard. “Only if she doesn’t make you work.”

With a small gasp, Tony stares down at Morgan, then pushes a strand of hair out of her face to better see her. “And here I thought you liked working with me.”

“I like pop juice more,” Morgan replies earnestly, with a wicked grin tugging at the corner of her mouth. “I’m not allowed to touch anything with sticky fingers.”

She usually does not manage to keep to that, of course, but the bots love the excitement of cleaning up after her. 

“That’s right. Look at that.” Swallowing a grin, Tony presses his index finger against Morgan’s nose. “Morgan H. Stark remembered the rules. FRIDAY, make a note. We’ll turn this into a holiday.”

Giggling, Morgan beams up at him. Her eyes are still red-rimmed, but the shadows in them are dissipating quickly. Tony thinks they are incredibly lucky that Morgan’s demons are so easily dealt with. He still needs to know what happened.

“Now, do you want to tell me why it’s too dark?”

Morgan knows what happened five years ago, but only in the most basic sense. It is hardly possible to keep the truth hidden. The world is still reeling. Some holes are not meant to be filled.

More specifically, Morgan knows about the almost-brother she never got to meet but whose pictures are scattered all throughout the house. She knows about the giant memorial down in New York, where Tony regularly goes to leave flowers. She knows something is not right and that the universe is much larger than what she can easily see.

All of that, in itself, is terrifying.

Chewing on her lip, Morgan looks at her hand for a long minute before he raises her eyes back to Tony’s. “Are you afraid of the dark?”

That is a loaded question. He has always believed in honesty. Parents should be a safe place for children, but believing in their supposed invincibility can do more harm than good.

“Sometimes,” Tony answers seriously but does not linger on it. “Do you know what we Starks are very good at? Building lights.” He taps the middle of his own chest, feels the scar tissue through the thin shirt.

Tony knows about irrationality too, but he will never ignore his daughter and her worries. For all the things Howard has messed up, he has given Tony a clear guide of what to do differently with his own child.

“Let’s make a deal,” Tony continues, “we’ll go up to your room now and I’ll tell you a story until you’re sleeping. And tomorrow, we’ll build you a nightlight together.”

Morgan is not in danger, and soon she will forget all about monsters under her bed. It is perhaps too much to think about giving her an arc reactor of her own, but Tony loves all the time spent with Morgan and it is never too soon to learn the means to protect oneself. Once, Tony built himself an armour. He very much hopes that Morgan will never need one, but he is not sure how long he will still be there to keep her safe, so he will do everything he can to make sure she is prepared for the world outside.

More selfishly, he also wants her to have something to hold onto that reminds her of him. Tony has no plans on leaving her any time soon, but life has never exactly turned out the way he planned it. He never got to make many good memories with his parents. Morgan deserves better than that.

“I like the light,” Morgan says, not quite pouting but not entirely happy either, “but only when it’s with you.”

Tony pulls her close again. “And you’ll have mine for as long as you need it,” he promises, voice slightly hoarse. “But it’s always good to build something of your own.”

Love is a scary thing. It takes and takes and takes. Sometimes it pushes all the air out of his lungs and makes his heart feel ready to burst. Sometimes he feels like he has never been happier.

“Okay,” Morgan says, tugging at his arm to signal she is ready to go up, “but I want two stories.”

Tony chuckles as he rises to his feet. He would tell her all the stories in the world if that made her happy. He would never leave their house at the lake again.

His life has made some strange turns, good and bad. He has gathered scars and regrets and still owes so much.

Most importantly, though, he has found his home.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!


End file.
